Colorado lands Rivals150 forward Battey

Labor Day weekend 2016 will go down as one of the greatest recruiting weekends in the history of Colorado basketball.

That weekend, Tad Boyle and the Buffaloes landed two four-star visitors in wing D'Shawn Schwartz and combo forward Tyler Bey. Just under a month a later, they've added the third Labor Day weekend visitor, Rivals150 forward Evan Battey.

A 6-foot-7 matchup problem with the size and strength of a Rivals150 left tackle recruit, the highly skilled product of Villa Park (Calif.) High discussed his decision.

“The choice is going to be Colorado," Battey told Rivals.com. "I feel like it was the right place for me. It was the best fit for me to play in the Pac-12 and play in front of my family."

Battey is interesting because he doesn't fit into the typical mold of a high end hoops recruit. However, Colorado and Boyle threw all of that out and focused on his skill and production and forged a great relationship.

Battey cited their relationship but also pointed to the success kids from Southern California have had in Boulder and the ease he felt with the other members of his recruiting class after bonding on their visit.

“It does help that I know a lot of the guys on the team because they recruit SoCal well," said Battey. “I’m beyond excited to play with D'Shawn and Tyler. Me and Tyler have played together before and I’m excited to play with him again and D’Shawn seems like he is going to be a great guy."

The addition of Battey will move Colorado up to No. 10 in the 2017 team rankings and now he's looking forward to preparing for his arrival in Boulder.

“I’m working on getting my wind up and getting in more shape and being in better condition," said Battey. "I’m trying to be more athletic and make more plays above the rim.”